Montana Speed Report

As you may know, Montana removed all daytime speed limits on December 8, 1995. Here is the
first speed survey done by MT DOT for the period Jan - March, 1996:

Road type

Miles

Number of vehicles
observed

%>55

%>60

%>65

%>70

%>75

%>80

%>85

Urban
Interstate

11

13,770

82.08

55.57

24.06

12.22

5.03

---

---

Rural
Interstate

1,180

20,867

---

---

47.82

22.26

7.90

2.83

0.61

Rural
other

12,719

29,774

59.18

34.09

15.59

5.84

2.15

---

---

%>55 means percent of drivers exceeding 55, 65, etc.

And here is one done for the period April - June, 1996:

Road type

Miles

Number of vehicles
observed

%>55

%>60

%>65

%>70

%>75

%>80

%>85

Urban
Interstate

11

12,392

83

51

31

16

9

---

---

Rural
Interstate

1,180

31,579

---

---

61

38

19

8

2

Rural
other

12,719

41,769

69

44

23

9

3

---

---

%>55 means percent of drivers exceeding 55, 65, etc.

So, who can't be trusted -- the motorists who aren't abusing that freedom, or the safety
organizations that said everyone would be zooming around at 100 mph?

Self-preservation. What a novel concept.

Do the safety groups, whose self-anointed position is to protect us from ourselves, know that
when Montana had a speed limit, it was treated with all the seriousness of a parking ticket? From
1974 to December 8th, 1995, Montana law said anyone who went over the 55/65 daytime speed
limit was guilty of not conserving a natural resource (not speeding) and would be fined all of $5.
Furthermore, the legislature made it so that no $5 ticket could be kept on your license for the
purpose of suspending it. As if that wasn't enough, they also said that insurance companies
could not raise your rates if you got one (or 100) of the $5 tickets. In effect, Montana never did
have a speed limit even when they did.

When the safety groups say that the fatalities are higher in rural states (which they are), they place little or no
importance on the lack of passing drivers (to get/give help), not to mention ambulances that have
to drive 15 minutes or more to get to the scene. They can't change that, so they blame
speed.